Zalantun

Zalantun ᠵᠠᠯᠠᠨ ᠠᠢ᠌ᠯ 扎兰屯
—  County-level city  —
扎兰屯市
Nickname(s): 塞北小江南 Little Jiangnan of Saibei/Jiangnan beyond the Great Wall
Zalantun Location in Inner Mongolia
Coordinates: 48°00′N 122°47′E
Country	People's Republic of China
Region	Inner Mongolia
Prefecture-level city	Hulunbuir
Time zone	China Standard (UTC+8)
Postal code	162650
Area code(s)	0470
Website	http://www.zhalantun.gov.cn/

Zalantun (Chinese: 扎兰屯市 Zālántún shì; Mongolian: ᠵᠠᠯᠠᠨ ᠠᠢ᠌ᠯ ᠬᠣᠲᠠ) or Zhalantun (alternative reading of Zālántún commonly used by natives: Zhālántún), formerly known in Manchu as J̌alan Ai"l or Jalan Tun, is a city with an estimated population of 132,408 and administrative division of Hulunbuir prefecture, Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. It is in the northeastern part of Inner Mongolia, in the southeastern foothills of the Greater Khingan mountains. It is an area of considerable natural beauty, including forests and streams as well as the Yalu River (雅鲁河; not to be confused with the Yalu River on the Sino-Korean border), and is known for its hunting and fishing.

History

Zhalantun was formerly known as Buteha (布特哈: Pinyin Bùtèhā), and the city was made into an administrative centre in the Kangxi era. In 1929, Buteha was renamed as Yalu county (雅鲁县; Pinyin: Yǎlǔ Xiàn) because the Yalu River runs through it, but in 1933 it became the Zalantun banner (扎兰屯旗; Pinyin: Zhālántún Qí). In 1983, Zalantun ceased to be a banner and became a part of Hulunbuir prefecture.

Climate

Climate data for Zalantun
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	−13 (9)	−6 (21)	1 (33)	11 (51)	19 (66)	25 (77)	26 (78)	24 (75)	19 (66)	11 (51)	−1 (30)	−10 (14)	8.8 (47.6)
Average low °C (°F)	−24 (−11)	−19 (−2)	−12 (10)	−3 (27)	4 (40)	12 (53)	16 (60)	14 (57)	7 (45)	−3 (27)	−13 (8)	−21 (−6)	−3.5 (25.7)
Precipitation mm (inches)	3 (0.1)	3 (0.1)	5 (0.2)	18 (0.7)	33 (1.3)	71 (2.8)	122 (4.8)	104 (4.1)	69 (2.7)	15 (0.6)	8 (0.3)	3 (0.1)	454 (17.8)
Source: Weatherbase

Economy

Zhalantun's economy is based primarily on tourism and agriculture, livestock and forestry. The Harbin-Manzhouli Railway traverses the district. It is rich in food grains, particularly wheat, soy and corn, as well as cattle, sheep, horse and other livestock. It has an industrial base in paper production, candy production, and wool. It has an annual average temperature of 2°C and an average annual precipitation of 480mm. The northwest portion of the district consists of natural forests in the Greater Khingan mountains.